Ondo Guber: APC Governorship Candidate Leaves party, Picks NNPP Ticket

A Frontline governorship aspirant under the platform of the All Progressive Congress in Ondo state,Hon Olugbenga Edema, has dumped the party.

Edema, has subsequently picked the governorship ticket of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) following the withdrawal of the party’s former candidate Ayeni Oluwatosin, from the race.

In his acceptance speech after he was elected during a substitution governorship primary of the party, held in Akure ,Edema, thanked members of his new party for unanimously voting for him as the party’s candidate in the November 16 election.

He said that ” I offer myself as your candidate and standard bearer for the Ondo state gubernatorial election coming up on the 16th November 2024.

“I accept the challenge, I accept the mandate freely and willingly granted to me today, and I promise not to ever look back.

He added that “I have carefully studied the manifesto of the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP) which have been skillfully put together by some great minds and I have found out that a great deal aligns with our vision as encapsulated in the Igbega Ondo manifesto which has been put together by our team for taking Ondo State out of the woods and setting it on the “consolidation and sustainability lane” for total development.

Edema has therefore served the incumbent governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa quit notice from effective from February 24, next year.

According to him “We therefore use this medium to serve a notice to quit to Governor Lucky Orimisan Ayedatiwa and his APC cohorts that effective from the 24th February 2025, the Government House, Alagbaka will no longer be available for their use.

“With the NNPP, we are providing a more veritable and people-oriented government to all the good people of Ondo State as captured in our manifesto which would be made available in due course.

The candidate also took a swipe at his former party, the All Progressive Congress, saying that the April 16 November governorship primary election was undemocratic.

Edema said that “This act of impunity should not be supported and be allowed to continue in our polity. It is trite that you cannot give what you do not have. And as the saying goes “a house built with spittle will certainly collapse under the early morning dew”.

“The demise of the All Progressives Congress (APC) is just around the corner like its sister, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) from which it took over the reign of power.

“It is on this note that I hereby formally announce my resignation from the All Progressives Congress (APC) forthwith.

” I hereby pitch my tent with the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP), a truly progressive and people-oriented party. This is a party for the immediate future. I don port o!

Meanwhile, the former governorship candidate of the party, Ayeni Oluwatosin, said in a letter made available to vanguard said “that that his withdrawal was in the interest of the party.

“ I, Ayeni, Oluwatosin Israel, a governorship candidate of NNPP for the November 16, 2024 election in Ondo State, hereby voluntarily withdraw my candidacy from the contest.

“My withdrawal is in the best interest of our great party, NNPP,” the letter read.

The state chairman of the party, Peter Olagookun, said that Ayeni willingly withdrew his candidacy to give way for better candidacy of the party.

Olagookun, said that the change of the party’s candidacy would further strengthen the party for victory in the forthcoming governorship election in the state.